A/N: Hey, I'm back! This is the last chapter T.T Okay, it's not really the last chapter, because I am definitely writing the epilogue! I love epilogues!
Yay, reviews! Special thanks to the reviewers (roo17, CuteLikeMomiji, Gir101) but in particular to the new reviewer, Akasaku123! I love reviews! I enjoy reading them (Orochimaru was pretty creepy in the last chapter, wasn't he?)!
Includes spoilers of the first 19 episodes, but I'm assuming you already know what happen.
Sorry for making this chapter so short!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto... whatever made you think I did?

Two Sides of the Same Kunai
Chapter 8

So much had changed in so little time. Naruto had become a genin (Third time's the charm!), a part of Team 7, friends/rivals with the last Uchiha (Sasuke, of course). He also learned a Jonin level justu, and fought one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist!

It was a nice sunny day in Konoha, with colourful birds flying in the air, and thin wispy clouds in the sky. Naruto was just waking up, and he stretched. He ate breakfast (a slice of toast with butter on it), and got dressed, still looking half asleep. After locking the door though, he seemed to snap awake. "I'm going to complete more missions today!" He shouted with enthusiasm, "Let's go!" and he ran to bridge where Team 7 was supposed to meet.

Sakura and Sasuke were waiting at the bridge, when they heard footsteps. Naruto was sprinting towards them, and he smiled at Sakura. "Good morning, Sakura!". Then Naruto noticed Sasuke. They narrowed their eyes at each other, then looked away. "Hmmph."

Sakura sulked. Ugh, they're doing it again... She complained to herself, These two have been acting weird since we all returned from the Land of the Wave. I feel awkward now... Sakura's inner self decided to complain too, in her loud, angry way. Kakashi, hurry up and come, damn it!

After a long time, Kakashi finally showed up. "Hello everybody. Good morning." Kakashi greeted them cheerfully. "I got lost today, so..."

Sakura and Naruto shouted/scolded him at the same time. "You're late!"

"Hey, Kakashi!" Naruto started excitedly, "We've only been doing easy missions, right? Isn't there a mission where I can play an active role, and something that's more... exciting? Something that makes my 'way of the ninja', you know, my heart, like this?" Naruto displayed his fiery energy.

"Yeah, yeah. I see what you're trying to get at." Kakashi vainly attempted to calm Naruto down.

Naruto turned around to face Sasuke. I'm not going to lose to this guy! Naruto daydreamed about saving Sasuke, and basically showing off in front of him.

"Hey Naruto, what are you doing? We have a mission!" Kakashi called.

"Roger!" Naruto replied.

"You're so noisy!" Sakura whined.

Team 7 spent the rest of the day doing their simple missions, pulling out weeds, picking up litter in a stream that led to a waterfall, walking dogs, that kind of thing. Naturally, Naruto had to get competitive with Sasuke and ruin even those meagre tasks.

~Later~

Konohamaru was escaping from Sakura. If you want to know why, well, let's just say that it had something to do with Sakura being called an "ugly-wide-forehead girl". Anyways, Konohamaru was getting out of there, but he ended up runing into someone and falling on the ground. Two tall figures (a blonde girl and a guy dressed almost completely in black) loomed above him. "That hurt." The male one said.

The rest (Konoharmaru's friends, Naruto, and Sakura) looked at them with shock.

"That hurt, brat." he said again, and he lifted up Konohamaru by the front of his shirt.

"Stop it." The blonde female sighed. "We're going to get scolded later."

... Err... After much yelling, charging, and threats from Naruto, finally, a rock came flying and hit Kankuro (because of course it was Kankuro), and he let go of Konohamaru. Everyone looked up and saw Sasuke in the trees, casually throwing and catching another rock.

"What do you think you're doing in another person's village?"

Sakura freaked out in her fan-girlish way. "Sasuke!"

"Get lost." Sasuke basically commanded them, and he crushed the stone into sand.

All the girls girlishly freaked out again. "He's so cool!"

Konohamaru turned and pointed at Naruto. "Naruto, you're not cool."

Naruto sweat-dropped. "Hey hey, I would have beaten that guy..."

Konohamaru turned away. "Liar!"

"Hey! Come down, kid!" Kankuro yalled up to Sasuke. "I hate kids like you, who think they're so clever." He tugged on the mummy-like thing on his back.

"You're not going to use Karasu...?" Temari said with alarm as Kankuro set the mummy on the ground.

"Kankuro, stop." A voice came from the same tree Sasuke was perched on.

A red-haired figure hung upside-down from one of the branches. "You're a disgrace to our village."

~Meanwhile~

"So it's that time of year already?" Kakashi said casually.

"You've reported this to the other countries? I've already seen a few in the village." Asuma observed.

"So? When is it?" Kurenai asked.

"One week from now." The Third Hokage answered.

"That's sudden." Kakashi stated.

The Hokage let out a puff of smoke from his pipe. "I will make the official announcement... Seven days from now, the first of July, we will begin the Chuunin exams."